Referent based search suggestions

ABSTRACT

Computer-implemented methods for providing suggestions for a search based on previously viewed content are provided. In one aspect, a method includes receiving information on previously viewed content, and receiving a request to enter a query into a search field subsequent to receiving the information on the previously viewed content. The method also includes identifying, based on the content, at least one entity referred to in the content, and providing an identifier of the at least one entity for display with the search field. Systems and machine-readable storage media are also provided.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application No.13/646,633, entitled “REFERENT BASED SEARCH SUGGESTIONS,” filed on Oct.5, 2012, and issued as U.S. Pat. No. 8,930,393, which claims the benefitof priority under 35 U.S.C. §119 from U.S. Provisional Application Nos.61/646,214 entitled “REFERENT BASED SEARCH SUGGESTIONS,” filed on May11, 2012, and 61/543,752 entitled “REFERENT DETERMINATION FROM SELECTEDCONTENT,” filed on Oct. 5, 2011. The disclosures of all theseapplications are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety forall purposes.

BACKGROUND

The present disclosure generally relates to the transmission of dataover a network, and more particularly to the use of a computing deviceto identify data communicated over a network.

Users browsing web pages in a web browser often seek to conduct a newweb page search after viewing a web page in the web browser. In manyinstances, a user seeks to search for information related to a previousweb page or web pages the user was viewing in the web browser, such asby opening a new web page viewing window from a current web page viewingwindow and/or entering text or content into a search query box. In suchinstances, the user must type into the search query box text identifyingcontent from the previous web page or web pages that the user wasviewing, or, if the text or content is difficult to re-type (e.g., if itis in a foreign language or is very long), then the user must copy andpaste the content into the search query box.

SUMMARY

According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, acomputer-implemented method for providing suggestions for a search basedon previously viewed content is provided. The method includes receivinginformation on previously viewed content, and receiving a request toenter a query into a search field subsequent to receiving theinformation on the previously viewed content. The method also includesidentifying, based on the content, at least one entity referred to inthe content, and providing an identifier of the at least one entity fordisplay with the search field.

According to another embodiment of the present disclosure, a system forproviding suggestions for a search based on previously viewed content isprovided. The system includes a memory and a processor. The memoryincludes an identification of previously viewed user content. Theidentification includes an address of the previously viewed usercontent, pointer to the previously viewed user content, or a copy of thepreviously viewed user content. The processor is configured to receive arequest to enter a query into a search field, and identify, based on thecontent, at least one entity referred to in the content. The processoris also configured to provide an identifier of the at least one entityfor display with the search field.

According to a further embodiment of the present disclosure, amachine-readable storage medium includes machine-readable instructionsfor causing a processor to execute a method for providing suggestionsfor a search based on previously viewed content is provided. The methodincludes receiving information on at least one previously viewed webpage, and receiving a request to enter a query into a search fieldsubsequent to receiving the information on the at least one previouslyviewed web page. The method also includes identifying, based on thecontent, at least one entity referred to in the at least one previouslyviewed web page, and providing an identifier of the at least one entityfor display with the search field.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide furtherunderstanding and are incorporated in and constitute a part of thisspecification, illustrate disclosed embodiments and together with thedescription serve to explain the principles of the disclosedembodiments. In the drawings:

FIG. 1 illustrates an example architecture for providing suggestions fora search based on previously viewed content.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example client and server fromthe architecture of FIG. 1 according to certain aspects of thedisclosure.

FIG. 3 illustrates an example process for providing suggestions for asearch based on previously viewed content.

FIGS. 4A-4C are example illustrations associated with the exampleprocess of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating an example computer system withwhich the client and server of FIG. 2 can be implemented.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the following detailed description, numerous specific details are setforth to provide a full understanding of the present disclosure. It willbe apparent, however, to one ordinarily skilled in the art that theembodiments of the present disclosure may be practiced without some ofthese specific details. In other instances, well-known structures andtechniques have not been shown in detail so as not to obscure thedisclosure.

The disclosed application provides search query suggestions for a userbased on the previous content the user was viewing. The suggestions canbe based on the content of what the user was viewing and/or the contextin which the user was viewing the content. For example, if theapplication is a web browser and the content is from a web page(s), thenwhen a user of a browser seeks to begin entering text into a searchquery box, the browser first provides to a server information on theprevious web page or web pages viewed by the user and the context inwhich they were viewed. Next, the server analyzes the web page(s)previously viewed by the user and their context to identify suggestedsearch terms (e.g., including entities referred to in the content and/orassociated actions), and then provides those suggested search terms tothe client for the client to display to the user within or near thesearch query box. For example, if a user was previously viewing a webpage on restaurants in Mountain View, Calif., the server can providesuggested search queries of “Mountain View,” “restaurants,” and “SushiABC” (a name of a sushi restaurant in Mountain view), and furtherprovide suggested actions of “directions to Sushi ABC” and “make areservation at Sushi ABC” for display in the web browser on the client.In certain aspects, the suggestions can also be identified on the client(e.g., without a server) by an analysis of word frequency in a web page.

Although many examples provided herein describe a user's information(e.g., user selections, previously viewed content, and other actions)being stored in memory, the user can, at any time, delete the userinformation from memory and/or opt out of having the user informationstored in memory. Additionally, the user can, at any time, adjustappropriate privacy settings to selectively limit the types of userinformation stored in memory, or select the memory in which the userinformation is stored (e.g., locally on the user's device as opposed toremotely a server). The user information does not include and/or sharethe specific identification of the user (e.g., the user's name) unlessotherwise specifically provided or directed by the user.

FIG. 1 illustrates an example architecture 100 for providing suggestionsfor a search based on previously viewed content. The architecture 100includes servers 130 and clients 110 connected over a network 150.

One of the many servers 130 is configured to host an entity database anddata on previously viewed user content. For purposes of load balancing,multiple servers 130 can host the entity database (or portions thereof).As discussed herein, the data on previously viewed user content (e.g.,identifiers, addresses, pointers, or copies of web pages, documents,messages, etc.) (“user viewable content” or “previously viewed content”)is provided by a user's client 110 to a server 130, and that data isthen shared with the entity database. An identification of at least oneentity from the entity database that is being referred to in the userviewable content is then made. The entity being referred to in the userviewable content (i.e., the “referent entity” or “referent”) can beidentified, for example, by identifying one or many entities appearingin the viewed content or inferred from the viewed content (e.g., using acontext in which the content is viewed), and comparing the identifiedentities or other related entities to entities in the entity database,along with a context in which the content was viewed. The context can bebased on, for example, a current or past location of the client 110, aprevious use of the user viewable content by the user or another user, asearch query, information on another user associated with the user, thefile or source from which the user viewable content was provided, andany linked to or associated content of the user viewable content. Anidentifier of the referent entity can then be provided to the client110. Additionally, at least one action associated with the entity to beexecuted can be identified, including based on a context in which thecontent is viewed. Information on the entity and the action can then beprovided to the client 110 for display with a search field (e.g., searchbox) and selection by a user.

The servers 130 can be any device having an appropriate processor,memory, and communications capability for hosting the entity databaseand data on previously viewed user content. The clients 110 to which theservers 130 are connected over the network 150 can be, for example,desktop computers, mobile computers, tablet computers (e.g., includinge-book readers), mobile devices (e.g., a smartphones or personal digitalassistants), set top boxes (e.g., for a television), video gameconsoles, or any other devices having appropriate processor, memory, andcommunications capabilities for interacting with content. The network150 can include, for example, any one or more of a personal area network(PAN), a local area network (LAN), a campus area network (CAN), ametropolitan area network (MAN), a wide area network (WAN), a broadbandnetwork (BBN), the Internet, and the like. Further, the network 150 caninclude, but is not limited to, any one or more of the following networktopologies, including a bus network, a star network, a ring network, amesh network, a star-bus network, tree or hierarchical network, and thelike.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram 200 illustrating an example server 130 andclient 110 in the architecture 100 of FIG. 1 according to certainaspects of the disclosure. The client 110 and the server 130 areconnected over the network 150 via respective communications modules 218and 238. The communications modules 218 and 238 are configured tointerface with the network 150 to send and receive information, such asdata, requests, responses, and commands to other devices on the network.The communications modules 218 and 238 can be, for example, modems orEthernet cards.

The server 130 includes a processor 236, a communications module 238,and a memory 232 that includes an entity database 234 and a previouslyviewed user content data store 242. The previously viewed user contentdata store 242 includes copies of or references to content previouslyviewed by one or many users. The data for the previously viewed usercontent data store 242 is provided by each user's client 110 with theuser's permission. The data can include, for example, an address (e.g.,disk location or web address), indexing, or copy of a web page,document, message, or other user viewable content.

The entity database 234 includes a listing of entities, each of whichcould be a possible referent entity of user viewable content identifiedin the previously viewed user content data store 242. The entitydatabase 234 can be stored in any format well known to one of ordinaryskill in the art, such as, but not limited to, an array, a linked list,a hash-table, a heap, a tree, a stack, a graph, or a queue. The entitiesinclude people, places, and things. For example, an entity can be aperson, a product being sold, or a business such as a restaurant. Theentity of the user viewable content “this literature is a large body ofliterature in the English and American languages produced by the HoysalaEmpire (1025-1343) in what is now southern India,” can, for example, beidentified as Hoysala literature.

Entities in the entity database 234 can be tagged or otherwiseidentified with certain descriptors (e.g., attributes or properties).The descriptors can be pre-defined by an administrator of the server 130or created by other users. For example, an entity such as a restaurantthat is a place (e.g., a café at a specific location in New York City)can have associated descriptors “location,” “restaurant,” and “phonenumber,” and an entity that is a person such as George Washington canhave an associated descriptor “notable person” (e.g., the entity GeorgeWashington). The person can be notable for many reasons, such as, inthis case, being the first president of the United States. Exampledescriptors include, for example, restaurant, store, hotel, automatedteller machine, airport, place of worship, notable place, notableperson, administrator, product, movie, museum, and software. Descriptorscan include any descriptive label for an entity, and are not limited tothe example descriptors disclosed herein.

An entity listed in the entity database 234 can be associated with oneor many user purposes and/or actions based on an associated descriptor.Specifically, each entity can be associated with one or many purposes,and each of the one or many purposes for the entity can be associatedwith one or many actions. As discussed herein, a “purpose,” “userpurpose,” or “predicted purpose” is what a user wants to do or find outwith respect to an entity that is deemed to be the referent of userviewable content. An “action” or “user action” is a menu or selectableitem that is provided to a user on a client 110 (e.g., within, near, orassociated with a search field) that facilitates the user accomplishinga purpose. A collection of purposes can be called a “task.” Examplepurposes include “play” (e.g. for games and sports), “rate” or“evaluate,” “travel to,” “contact,” “communicate,” “share,” “record,”“remember,” dine,” “consume,” “experience” or “enjoy” (e.g. art, music),“reserve” (tickets, etc.), “compare,” “learn,” “study,” “understand,”“purchase,” “repair,” “fix,” “teach,” “cook,” and “make.” For theexample purpose “dine,” an example sub-purpose can be “eat dinner,” fromwhich example sub-purposes can be “make reservation,” “get directions,”and “find parking.”

For example, for an entity with a descriptor “restaurant,” a purposemight be to get to the restaurant and a corresponding action might be toprovide the user with directions from the user's current location on theuser's mobile client 110 to an address associated with the restaurant.Another corresponding action might be to request a taxi to pick up theuser from the user's current location and deliver the user to therestaurant. Other example purposes for selecting an entity with adescriptor of “restaurant” include calling, making a reservation,reading reviews, and saving contact information. Similarly, if theuser's purpose is to eat dinner, then it can include the purposes ofchoosing a restaurant, making a reservation, and traveling to therestaurant. As another example, for an entity with a descriptor“software,” a purpose might be to install the software and an actionmight be to provide the user with a one click option to install thesoftware on the user's desktop client 110. In certain aspects, actionsare associated with corresponding purposes.

In certain aspects, an entity can be associated with a purpose (andcorresponding action(s)) that is valid when a group of similar entitiesis selected. For example, if user viewable content includes threeentities with a descriptor “restaurant,” and all three of the entitiesare together considered the referent of the user viewable content, thenthe user purpose can be to compare the restaurants. The associatedaction can be to provide the user with a comparison of reviews orproximities of the three restaurants.

Entities, purposes, and actions can be added to the entity database 234manually or automatically. In response, the entity database 234 can beupdated periodically or in real-time. Entities can be added to theentity database 234 manually, for example, by a user adding or removinga listing to the entity database 234 for a new local restaurant thatopened near the user or an old restaurant that closed near the user. Asanother example, if an entity in the entity database 234 is notassociated with a telephone number, a user (e.g., owner of the entity)can provide a telephone number for the entity using an appropriateinterface for the entity database 234. An entity's listing can include,for example, a name identifier of the entity, a web site associated withthe entity, a history of the entity, contact information for the entity,relationships the entity has, images associated with the entity,availability of the entity, a price or value associated with the entity,and a location of the entity. For example, for a restaurant, the listingcan include the restaurant's name, location, store hours, menu, history,and relevant descriptors such as “place” and “restaurant.” Actions canbe added to the entity database 234 manually, for example, by a useradding or removing an action from a list of actions associated with anentity in the entity database 234. This can occur, for example, by auser providing instructions on how to perform a new action in the list(e.g., by providing step by step instructions on how to perform the newaction) or by providing input parameters to an action template (e.g., byproviding address information for a directions template for a locationentity).

Entities, purposes, and actions can be added to the entity database 234automatically, including additions by data sources/feeds, inferentialadditions, and programmatic additions. Data source automatic additionsinclude, for example, the processor 212 periodically crawling Internetresources (e.g., white pages, yellow pages, encyclopedias, socialnetworks, mapping databases, online stores, online reviews, other onlineindex/data providers, etc.) that list or include information onentities, and then import that information on the entities to the entitydatabase 234. Entities, purposes, and actions can also be added orremoved to the entity database 234 inferentially, for example, inresponse to actions taken by (or not taken by) users, such as searchterms, web pages, blogs, emails, and/or comments commonly entered byusers or proposed entities frequently ignored by users. For instance, auser searches for a specific restaurant, the specific restaurant isidentified as the entity being referred to, and a telephone number forthe restaurant is not in the entity database 234. If the user thereafteruses the client 110 to make a telephone call within a certain amount oftime (e.g., within a minute after searching for the specificrestaurant), then the telephone number dialed can be added to the entitydatabase 234 as the telephone number for the restaurant. As anotherexample, a user searches for a specific restaurant, the specificrestaurant is identified as the entity being referred to, and an addressfor the restaurant is not in the entity database 234. If the userthereafter changes geographical position and indicates the user is atthe restaurant, the geographic location of the user (e.g., using aGlobal Positioning System (GPS) sensor in the client 110) can be addedto the entity database 234 as the location of the restaurant. As afurther example, the entity database 234 includes an entry for abusiness called “Chez Paul” that includes a telephone number for ChezPaul. The entry does not, however, indicate that Chez Paul is arestaurant. If there is an indication that a user is looking for arestaurant (e.g., by inference or because the user explicitly providesthe indication), then when the user chooses to call Chez Paul from theclient 110, the entity database 234 can update the entry for Chez Paulto indicate it is a restaurant (e.g., using an improved statisticalvalue). In certain aspects, when information is added based oninference, the information can be weighted based on a determinedreliability rating of the user, with a notification stating theinformation appears to be correct but has not been confirmed, or acombination thereof. Actions and purposes can be also added to theentity database 234 inferentially, for example, by the processor 212monitoring user behavior after a user rejects actions suggested by theprocessor 234, and creating an action based on the user behavior (e.g.,adding an action of “find parking” when a user uses the client 110 tolocate parking near a restaurant after the user rejects selecting aproposed action of directions to the restaurant). Additionally, purposescan be grouped together automatically by the processor 212 monitoringuser behavior that indicates one or more purposes are associated with acertain entity or action. Programmatic additions include where anadministrator (e.g., a user programming the disclosed system) providesprogramming instructions to the processor 234 to detect information forentities in the entity database 234 (e.g., to handle an entity or classof entities).

The entity database 234 thus includes a listing of entities and relatedinformation (e.g., purposes and actions) that might be useful to a user,and can be accessed as a lookup table. For example, an input request tothe entity database 234 of “sushi abc” can return information thatindicates an entity Sushi ABC is a restaurant, it is located in MountainView, the food it sells, its phone number, its store hours, its reviews,and past visits there by the user or similar users (e.g., the user'sfriends). It can further provide actions to execute, such as displayingdirections to Sushi ABC, reviews of Sushi ABC, the address of Sushi ABC,making a reservation at Sushi ABC, finding parking at or near Sushi ABC,or sales, discounts, or promotions (including real-time promotionstargeted at users of the system) at Sushi ABC.

The processor 236 of the server 130 is configured to executeinstructions, such as instructions physically coded into the processor236, instructions received from software in memory 240, or a combinationof both. With reference to FIG. 3, an example process 300 for providingsuggestions for a search based on previously viewed content isillustrated. Although process 300 will be described with reference tothe systems of FIGS. 1 and 2, process 300 is not limited to such. Theprocessor 236 of the server 130 in step 310 executes instructions toreceive an identifier of content (e.g., receive, from a client 110, anaddress or a copy of a web page previously viewed by a user). Anidentifier of content can include, but is not limited to, a pointer tothe content, an address of the content, an index of the content, asummary of the content, or a copy of the content. The content caninclude, but is not limited to, a web page, document, message, image,multimedia file, collection of text, or other file.

A user can enter a mode to provide the content in the application 222for interpretation by changing a setting in the application 222 to beginproviding suggestions with search queries. A user can also enter a modeto provide the content in the application 222 for interpretation byusing a trigger, such as a long press on a touchscreen input device 216or pressing the CTRL key and a mouse button on a keyboard and mouse. Incertain aspects, a user can choose to automatically be in the contentproviding mode when viewing the content file 224 in the application 222.

As the user views content, an identifier of the previously viewedcontent can be provided to the server 130 over the network 150. Theidentifier can indicate the immediately previous file, page, or portionof content the user viewed, or the identifier can indicate a pluralityof previous files, pages, or portions of content the user viewed.Contextual data indicating a context in which the user viewable contentwas viewed can also be provided to the server 130 with the identifier ofthe user viewable content. Contextual data can include preceding actionsof the user, including content viewing history, information on how(e.g., the method of loading or selecting the content for viewing, etc.)the content was viewed, a current location or past location of theclient 110, the type of the client 110, a previous use of the userviewable content by the user, a previous search query by the user,information on other users associated with the user, the content file224 from which the user viewable content was loaded or selected forviewing, the application 222 in which the content was selected, and theremaining or other content from which the content was viewed or selectedfor viewing. Contextual data can also include, for example, a time ofday of the selection, a current or predicted future weather at thelocation of the client 110, current news stories or other eventsproximate in space and/or time to the client 110, past actions of theclient 110, predictions about future actions of the user or client 110(e.g. based on appointments in the user's calendar, or those of theuser's known associates, or of other users in geographical proximity tothe client 110 that have elected to share their location information),or other factors. The information on the identifier of the previouslyviewed content as well as the contextual data are stored in thepreviously viewed user content data store 242.

In step 330, the processor 236 of the server 130 interprets the userviewable content (and the contextual data, if provided), and optionallya context in which it was viewed, to identify one or many entities beingreferred to in the user viewable content. The processor 236 of theserver 130 can also interpret the user viewable content to predict auser's purpose(s) for the entity(s) in order to identify actions tosuggest to the user for the entity. For example, the server 130 canrefer to the entity database 234 to interpret the user viewable contentto identify any entities in the user viewable content, and annotate apredict user's purpose for selecting the identified entities. In caseswhere there are multiple purposes identified for an entity, each purposecan be weighted based on a likelihood that it is the purpose forselecting the entity, with the highest weighted purpose being the mostlikely purpose. For example, returning to the example of the restaurantMiromesnil, a purpose of making a reservation may be assigned a highervalue (probability=0.75) than viewing the restaurant history(probability=0.25) because the user's client 110 is determined to begeographically close to the restaurant (e.g., in Paris).

Various ways to identify a referent entity of user-selectable contentwill now be described. User viewable content can include one or manyreferents, each of which is an entity. In cases where there are multipleentities identified in user viewable content, each entity can beweighted (or “scored”) based on a likelihood that it is a referent ofthe user viewable content, with the highest weighted entity being themost likely referent. For example, the user viewable content“Miromesnil” can refer to two entities, the Paris metro stop Miromesniland the restaurant named Miromesnil. The restaurant referent may beassigned a higher value (probability=0.9) than the metro stop referent(probability=0.1) because on contextual data indicating, among otherthings, that the user may have recently conducted a search forrestaurants on the user's client 110. The position of an entity in userviewable content can affect the entity's weighting. For example, anentity that visually appears in the approximate center of the user'sselection can be assigned a higher value than an entity that visuallyappears at the periphery of the user's selection.

The referent entity can be identified (and/or weighted) from the userviewable content based on the entity database 234 (e.g., a list ofentities), a current location of a client 110 on which the content isselected, a past location of the client 110, the type of the client(e.g., whether it is a mobile or non-mobile device), a previous use ofthe user viewable content by the user or another user, a search query,information on another user associated with the user, the file fromwhich the user viewable content was selected, or the remaining content(e.g., in the content file 224) from which the user viewable content wasselected.

In certain aspects, purposes and actions can also be assigned values forweighting in the entity database 234. For example, actions can beweighted according to their relevance to an associated entity. In suchcases, the weighting of an action for an entity can be updated (e.g.,decreased) based on an indication that a performance of the action wasabandoned or otherwise not selected by the user when the action isdisplayed to the user. Decreasing the weight of an action can be basedon a number of times an indication is received that a performance of theaction was abandoned by a user. For example, if multiple users do notselect a suggested action that is displayed an n number of times, thenthe suggested action can be reduced in weight among the other actionsassociated with the entity by a function of n.

As another example, actions can be weighted according to their relevanceto a user. For instance, if the associated value for an action can bebased on, or a function of, an estimated average amount of time it takesa user to manually perform the action (e.g., perform the action withoutthe assistance of the disclosed system). For example, if performing afirst action of making a reservation online for a restaurant would takea user five minutes, on average, and performing a second action ofcalling the restaurant would take a user 30 seconds, then the associatedvalue for the first action can be higher than the associated value forthe second action.

The estimated average amount of time to manually perform an action canbe calculated using user data. For example, a time it takes for a userto perform an action can be calculated by the processor 212 and providedto the entity database 234, which then uses the calculated time amountto determine or update the value for the associated action. The time ittakes for a user to perform an action can be also be provided manuallyto the entity database 234, such as by an administrator assigning apredetermined value.

The value can be updated periodically using recent user data. Forexample, the value can be updated on a daily basis at the end of the dayafter user data for the day has been used for calculations.

In certain aspects, the value associated with an action can be based onboth a relevance to a user and a predetermined relevance of the actionto an entity. For example, for each action, the relevance to the usercan be weighted according to one factor, and the predetermined relevanceof the action to an entity can be weighted according to another factor,and a combination of the weighted values can be used as the value forthe action. In certain aspects, other factors can also be considered.For example, the associated value for an action can be based on afrequency of times a user has selected the action, such as where a valuefor an action is increased based on a number of times the action isselected to be performed.

Returning to the identification of referent entities, an entity can alsobe identified as a referent based on the number of occurrences of anentity from the list of entities identified in the user viewablecontent. For instance, if an entity identifier (e.g., text) “Sushi ABC”appears in user viewable content more than any other identifier, then areferent of the user viewable content can be identified as Sushi ABC.

An entity can further be identified as a referent by comparing userviewable content of an image directly with an image or images associatedwith entities in the entity database 234. If the user viewable contentof an image appears substantially similar to an image associated with anentity in the entity database 234 (e.g., the similarity between the userviewable content and the image associated with the entity has a higherprobability value than the similarity between the user viewable contentand an image associated with any other entity in the entity database234), then the entity associated with the image can be identified as thereferent of the select content. Similarity between images can bedetermined using image recognition technology well known to those ofordinary skill in the art.

When the content file 224 is a web page, then an entity can beidentified as a referent based on other web pages that link to the webpage, other web pages that are linked to from the web page, text on theweb page, or an image on the web page. For example, a user selectscontent from a content file 224, namely, a web page that incorrectlyrefers to President George H. W. Bush as “George W. Bush.” Other webpages that link to the web page frequently and correctly include thetext “George Bush Sr.” and “George H. W. Bush.” The disclosed systemcorrectly identifies the referent entity of the user viewable content onthe web page, “George W. Bush,” as George H. W. Bush, even though theuser viewable content that incorrectly included the text “George W.Bush.”

A previous selection of an entity by another user as an appropriatereferent can also be used to identify entities as referents. The otheruser can be associated with the user that selected the content, such asby referring to the user's contact listing, the user's online socialnetwork data, or the user's electronic correspondence. For example, whena user selects content, an entity of that user viewable content can beidentified as a referent widget to buy if the user's friend also boughtthat widget.

An entity can further be identified as a referent from user viewablecontent based on whether a corresponding entity from the entity database234 is identified in response to a search query of the user viewablecontent. For example, if the user viewable content “Malagasy cuisineencompasses the diverse culinary traditions of the island of Madagascar;foods eaten in Madagascar reflect the influence of Southeast Asian,African, Indian, Chinese and European migrants” is entered into a searchquery, and the highest ranking result from the search query is a webpage titled “Malagasy cuisine,” then the referent of the user viewablecontent can be identified as Malagasy cuisine from among the entitiesMalagasy cuisine, Southeast Asia, Africa, India, China, Europe, andmigrants. As another example, if a user selects content that is an imageof a structure, and a search query of the image returns the text“Washington monument” as the most common result, then the user viewablecontent can be identified as an image of the referent entity Washingtonmonument.

An entity can yet further be identified as a referent from user viewablecontent based on a web page previously selected in response to a searchquery that includes at least a portion of the user viewable content. Forexample, the content “Malagasy cuisine encompasses the diverse culinarytraditions of the island of Madagascar, foods eaten in Madagascarreflect the influence of Southeast Asian, African, Indian, Chinese andEuropean migrants” is selected by a user. The same or similar contentwas previously selected and entered into a search query by the same useror another user. In response to the search results the user selected aweb page titled “Malagasy cuisine.” The referent entity of the userviewable content can then be identified as Malagasy cuisine.

Proximity of an entity from the entity database 234 that is identifiedin the user viewable content to the current location of the client 110,a past location of the client 110, or a known future location of theclient 110 (e.g., derived from a future restaurant reservation known tothe system, or an appointment in the user's calendar) can be used toidentify the entity as a referent. For example, if a user selects thecontent “Mountain View's multi-cultural restaurants, sidewalk cafes,specialty shops and professional services,” and the current location ofthe user's device is near the city of Mountain View, Calif., then thereferent entity Mountain View can be identified from among the variousentities: restaurant, café, shop, and professional services.

A previous use of the user viewable content by the user or another user,such as a previous selection by the user or another user of a referententity of content that includes the user viewable content, can also beused to identify a referent entity. For example, if a user selectscontent that is identical to content that has been selected in the pastby another user, and the other user in the past acted on a certainentity identified from the content as the referent, then that samereferent entity can be presented to the current user.

An entity can further be identified as a referent based on a proximityof entities (e.g., from the entity database 234), to the currentlocation of the client 110, that are identified in the user viewablecontent that have at least a predetermined ranking value in a resultlisting of a search query that includes at least a portion of the userviewable content. For example, if a user selects the content “MountainView's multi-cultural restaurants, sidewalk cafes, specialty shops andprofessional services,” the current location of the user's device isnear the city of Mountain View, Calif., and a search of the userviewable content returns “Mountain View” as the top ranking result, thenthe referent Mountain View can be identified from among the variousentities: restaurant, café, shop, and professional services.

If an entity is not appropriately identified as a referent in responseto a selection of content by a user, then the user can be provided withan interface for manually identifying the entity intended to be thereferent. For example, the interface can be a text box. If the referententity is not present in the entity database 234, then the entity can beadded to the entity database 234, for example, manually by the user. Theuser can also be provided with an opportunity to correct or otherwiseannotate the user viewable content to disambiguate the user viewablecontent or provide additional information that would facilitate theidentification of a referent entity. For example, the user can de-selecta portion of the user viewable content, select additional content, ormanually provide input (e.g., in a displayed text box) that providesadditional identifying information for the user's intended referent.

Returning to FIG. 3, and continuing as part of step 330, an identifierof the identified referent entity(s) is provided to the client 110 todisplay to the user. An identifier of an action(s) associated with apredicted user purpose(s) for the identified entity(s) can also beprovided to the client 110 to display to the user. Next, in step 350 theprocessor 236 is configured to execute instructions to provide, fordisplay, the identifiers at, near, with, or in association with a searchquery field. For example, when a user directs a cursor to a search queryfield, or begins typing within the search query field, text describingor naming the identified entities and actions can be displayed below thesearch query field. The user can then select an appropriate entity oraction to search for, load, or execute.

When the entity is a product, such as a bicycle, the actions that can bepresented to the user on the client 110 can include providing a reviewof the product, identifying a seller of the product, providing a pricefor the product, or providing an offer (e.g., discount or coupon)associated with the product. When the product is software, theassociated actions can also include providing a location for downloadingthe software, or installing the software. When the entity is a service,such as watching a movie or a plumber for hire, the actions that can bepresented to the user on the client 110 include providing a review ofthe service, identifying an availability of the service (e.g., showtimes), identifying a location where the service is being provided(e.g., an address of the plumber), or providing an option to purchasethe service (e.g., purchasing tickets for the movie or rates offered bythe plumber). When the entity is a location, such as a restaurant, theactions that can be presented to the user on the client 110 includeproviding a review of the location, identifying an address of thelocation, providing directions to the location, providing information onavailability of the location (e.g., making a reservation), providinginformation on parking associated with the location, or providing anoffer associated with the location. When the entity is a person, theactions that can be presented to the user on the client 110 includeproviding contact information for the person, a description of theperson, an image of the person, or information on a relationship withthe person (e.g., in an online social network).

FIG. 3 sets forth an example process 300 for identifying an entity basedon user viewable content using the example client 110 and server 130 ofFIG. 2. An example will now be described using the example process 300of FIG. 3, a client 110 that is a tablet computer with a touchscreeninterface, an application 222 that is a web browser, and a content file224 that is a web page for a restaurant Sushi ABC.

The process 300 proceeds to step 310 when a user on a tablet computer110 opens a web browser 222 to view a web page 224. FIG. 4A provides anexample illustration 400 of the web page 224. An identifier, namely theUniform Resource Locator (URL) address, of the web page 224 is providedto the server 130 when the user leaves the web page (e.g., chooses toview another web page or conduct another action in the web browser 222)along with information on the context (e.g., location of the tabletcomputer 110) in which the web page 224 was viewed on the tabletcomputer 110. In step 330, the server 130 loads a copy of the web page224 using the URL provided by the client and then interprets the contentof the web page (e.g., text and images) to identify any entity(s) andpredicted or expressed (e.g., via user selection) user purpose(s)associated with the web page 224.

Specifically, a search query is run of the user viewable content, andthe highest value results are web pages for: (1) the restaurant SushiABC, (2) the food sushi, (3), the city of Mountain View, Calif., and (4)a page listing restaurants in Mountain View. The URL for each high valueresult is then evaluated against the entity database 234. For example,the URL of the web page for the restaurant Sushi ABC is evaluated in theentity database 234, and the entity database 234 returns the entitySushi ABC as the entity being referred to due to the Sushi ABC entry inthe entity database 85 including the identical URL for the restaurant.The entity Sushi ABC is associated with a descriptors “location” and“restaurant” in the database. The entity Sushi ABC is also associated inthe entity database 234 with the purposes of going to the restaurant,calling the restaurant, saving information on the restaurant, and offersassociated with the restaurant. These purposes are associated with theactions of providing directions to the restaurant, dialing therestaurant, adding the restaurant information to a contacts database,and displaying offers associated with the restaurant, respectively.

Identifiers of the entities Sushi ABC (the text “Restaurant Sushi ABC”),sushi (the text “sushi”), Mountain View, Calif. (the text “MountainView, Calif.”), as well as an identifier of the group of entitiesrestaurants in Mountain View (the text “restaurants in Mountain View,Calif.”), are then provided by the server 130 to the tablet computer 110for display. A listing of actions 422 associated with the highestprobability/value entity Sushi ABC is also provided by the server 130 tothe client 110 for display. The entities and actions are not, however,displayed immediately. When the user thereafter conducts a web search byplacing a cursor in a search input field, thereby indicating the userhas finished viewing the web page 224, the identifiers of the entitiesand actions are displayed in step 350. The process 300 then ends.

FIG. 4B provides an example illustration 410 of one embodiment fordisplaying the entities and actions. In the example illustration 410,the entities and actions are displayed in step 350 in a suggestions listbelow the search input field 424 when the user directs a cursor to thesearch input field 424 while the content web page 224 is still loadedand displayed. The suggestions list includes the identifiers: “SushiABC” 412, which, when selected by the user, takes the user to the homepage for Sushi ABC in the web browser 222; “Directions from yourlocation to Sushi ABC” 414, which, when selected by the user, takes theuser to a web page in the web browser 222 displaying directions from thecurrent location of the tablet computer 110 to the geographical addressfor Sushi ABC; “Call Sushi ABC” 416, which, when selected by the user,places a telephone call from the tablet computer 110 to the worktelephone number for Sushi ABC; “sushi” 418, which, when selected by theuser, submits a web search in the web browser 222 for the term “sushi”;“Mountain View, Calif.” 420, which, when selected by the user, submits aweb search in the web browser 222 for the term “Mountain View, Calif.”;and “restaurants in Mountain View, Calif.” 422, which, when selected bythe user, provides a listing in the web browser 222 of entities from theentity database 234 identified as restaurants in Mountain View, Calif.

FIG. 4C provides an example illustration 430 of another embodiment fordisplaying the entities and actions. Unlike FIG. 4B, where the userdirects a cursor to a search input field 424 while the content web page224 is still loaded and displayed, in the example illustration 430 ofFIG. 4C the user has loaded a search web page 436 in the web browser 222that includes the search input field 432 and a search submission button434. In the search web page 436, the same entities and actions of FIG.4B are displayed in step 350 in a suggestions list below the searchinput field 424.

In yet other embodiments not illustrated, the suggestions list can bedisplayed after the user begins typing a query by entering at least onecharacter in the search input field 432. For example, the suggestionslist can be displayed on the search web page 436 after the user hasentered the character “s” into the input field 432. In certain aspects,after the user begins typing a query, a search, loading, and/orexecution of one or many of the items (e.g., entities or actions) in thesuggestions list can be automatically requested or submitted. Forexample, if the user has enters the character “s” in the input field432, the web browser 222 can automatically request the first item fromthe suggestions list, namely, information on (e.g., a home page for)Sushi ABC. In certain aspects, after the first item from the suggestionslist is loaded, the web browser 222 can display the first item from thesuggestions list.

The suggestions list can also include previously entered queries by theuser or other users. For example, if the user previously entered asearch query on the tablet computer 110 for “dictionary for spanish,”and subsequently enters “d” into the input field 432 intending to typethe query “dinner in mountain view”, the displayed suggestions list caninclude the completed query “dictionary for spanish”. The process 300then ends.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating an example computer system 500with which the client 110 and server 130 of FIG. 2 can be implemented.In certain aspects, the computer system 500 may be implemented usinghardware or a combination of software and hardware, either in adedicated server, or integrated into another entity, or distributedacross multiple entities.

Computer system 500 (e.g., client 110 and server 130) includes a bus 508or other communication mechanism for communicating information, and aprocessor 502 (e.g., processor 212 and 236) coupled with bus 508 forprocessing information. By way of example, the computer system 500 maybe implemented with one or more processors 502. Processor 502 may be ageneral-purpose microprocessor, a microcontroller, a Digital SignalProcessor (DSP), an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), aField Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), a Programmable Logic Device (PLD),a controller, a state machine, gated logic, discrete hardwarecomponents, or any other suitable entity that can perform calculationsor other manipulations of information.

Computer system 500 can include, in addition to hardware, code thatcreates an execution environment for the computer program in question,e.g., code that constitutes processor firmware, a protocol stack, adatabase management system, an operating system, or a combination of oneor more of them stored in an included memory 504 (e.g., memory 220 and232), such as a Random Access Memory (RAM), a flash memory, a Read OnlyMemory (ROM), a Programmable Read-Only Memory (PROM), an Erasable PROM(EPROM), registers, a hard disk, a removable disk, a CD-ROM, a DVD, orany other suitable storage device, coupled to bus 508 for storinginformation and instructions to be executed by processor 502. Theprocessor 502 and the memory 504 can be supplemented by, or incorporatedin, special purpose logic circuitry.

The instructions may be stored in the memory 504 and implemented in oneor more computer program products, i.e., one or more modules of computerprogram instructions encoded on a computer readable medium for executionby, or to control the operation of, the computer system 500, andaccording to any method well known to those of skill in the art,including, but not limited to, computer languages such as data-orientedlanguages (e.g., SQL, dBase), system languages (e.g., C, Objective-C,C++, Assembly), architectural languages (e.g., Java, .NET), andapplication languages (e.g., PHP, Ruby, Perl, Python). Instructions mayalso be implemented in computer languages such as array languages,aspect-oriented languages, assembly languages, authoring languages,command line interface languages, compiled languages, concurrentlanguages, curly-bracket languages, dataflow languages, data-structuredlanguages, declarative languages, esoteric languages, extensionlanguages, fourth-generation languages, functional languages,interactive mode languages, interpreted languages, iterative languages,list-based languages, little languages, logic-based languages, machinelanguages, macro languages, metaprogramming languages, multiparadigmlanguages, numerical analysis, non-English-based languages,object-oriented class-based languages, object-oriented prototype-basedlanguages, off-side rule languages, procedural languages, reflectivelanguages, rule-based languages, scripting languages, stack-basedlanguages, synchronous languages, syntax handling languages, visuallanguages, wirth languages, embeddable languages, and xml-basedlanguages. Memory 504 may also be used for storing temporary variable orother intermediate information during execution of instructions to beexecuted by processor 502.

A computer program as discussed herein does not necessarily correspondto a file in a file system. A program can be stored in a portion of afile that holds other programs or data (e.g., one or more scripts storedin a markup language document), in a single file dedicated to theprogram in question, or in multiple coordinated files (e.g., files thatstore one or more modules, subprograms, or portions of code). A computerprogram can be deployed to be executed on one computer or on multiplecomputers that are located at one site or distributed across multiplesites and interconnected by a communication network. The processes andlogic flows described in this specification can be performed by one ormore programmable processors executing one or more computer programs toperform functions by operating on input data and generating output.

Computer system 500 further includes a data storage device 506 such as amagnetic disk or optical disk, coupled to bus 508 for storinginformation and instructions. Computer system 500 may be coupled viainput/output module 510 to various devices. The input/output module 510can be any input/output module. Example input/output modules 510 includedata ports such as USB ports. The input/output module 510 is configuredto connect to a communications module 512. Example communicationsmodules 512 (e.g., communications module 218 and 238) include networkinginterface cards, such as Ethernet cards and modems. In certain aspects,the input/output module 510 is configured to connect to a plurality ofdevices, such as an input device 514 (e.g., input device 216) and/or anoutput device 516 (e.g., output device 214). Example input devices 514include a keyboard and a pointing device, e.g., a mouse or a trackball,by which a user can provide input to the computer system 500. Otherkinds of input devices 514 can be used to provide for interaction with auser as well, such as a tactile input device, visual input device, audioinput device, or brain-computer interface device. For example, feedbackprovided to the user can be any form of sensory feedback, e.g., visualfeedback, auditory feedback, or tactile feedback; and input from theuser can be received in any form, including acoustic, speech, tactile,or brain wave input. Example output devices 516 include display devices,such as a CRT (cathode ray tube) or LCD (liquid crystal display)monitor, for displaying information to the user.

According to one aspect of the present disclosure, the client 110 andserver 130 can be implemented using a computer system 500 in response toprocessor 502 executing one or more sequences of one or moreinstructions contained in memory 504. Such instructions may be read intomemory 504 from another machine-readable medium, such as data storagedevice 506. Execution of the sequences of instructions contained in mainmemory 504 causes processor 502 to perform the process steps describedherein. One or more processors in a multi-processing arrangement mayalso be employed to execute the sequences of instructions contained inmemory 504. In alternative aspects, hard-wired circuitry may be used inplace of or in combination with software instructions to implementvarious aspects of the present disclosure. Thus, aspects of the presentdisclosure are not limited to any specific combination of hardwarecircuitry and software.

Various aspects of the subject matter described in this specificationcan be implemented in a computing system that includes a back endcomponent, e.g., as a data server, or that includes a middlewarecomponent, e.g., an application server, or that includes a front endcomponent, e.g., a client computer having a graphical user interface ora Web browser through which a user can interact with an implementationof the subject matter described in this specification, or anycombination of one or more such back end, middleware, or front endcomponents. The components of the system can be interconnected by anyform or medium of digital data communication, e.g., a communicationnetwork. The communication network (e.g., communication network 150) caninclude, for example, any one or more of a personal area network (PAN),a local area network (LAN), a campus area network (CAN), a metropolitanarea network (MAN), a wide area network (WAN), a broadband network(BBN), the Internet, and the like. Further, the communication networkcan include, but is not limited to, for example, any one or more of thefollowing network topologies, including a bus network, a star network, aring network, a mesh network, a star-bus network, tree or hierarchicalnetwork, or the like. The communications modules can be, for example,modems or Ethernet cards.

Computing system 500 can include clients and servers. A client andserver are generally remote from each other and typically interactthrough a communication network. The relationship of client and serverarises by virtue of computer programs running on the respectivecomputers and having a client-server relationship to each other.Computer system 500 can be, for example, and without limitation, adesktop computer, laptop computer, or tablet computer. Computer system500 can also be embedded in another device, for example, and withoutlimitation, a mobile telephone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), amobile audio player, a GPS receiver, a video game console, and/or atelevision set top box.

The term “machine-readable storage medium” or “computer readable medium”as used herein refers to any medium or media that participates inproviding instructions to processor 502 for execution. Such a medium maytake many forms, including, but not limited to, non-volatile media,volatile media, and transmission media. Non-volatile media include, forexample, optical or magnetic disks, such as data storage device 506.Volatile media include dynamic memory, such as memory 504. Transmissionmedia include coaxial cables, copper wire, and fiber optics, includingthe wires that comprise bus 508. Common forms of machine-readable mediainclude, for example, floppy disk, a flexible disk, hard disk, magnetictape, any other magnetic medium, a CD-ROM, DVD, any other opticalmedium, punch cards, paper tape, any other physical medium with patternsof holes, a RAM, a PROM, an EPROM, a FLASH EPROM, any other memory chipor cartridge, or any other medium from which a computer can read. Themachine-readable storage medium can be a machine-readable storagedevice, a machine-readable storage substrate, a memory device, acomposition of matter effecting a machine-readable propagated signal, ora combination of one or more of them.

While this specification contains many specifics, these should not beconstrued as limitations on the scope of what may be claimed, but ratheras descriptions of particular implementations of the subject matter.Certain features that are described in this specification in the contextof separate embodiments can also be implemented in combination in asingle embodiment. Conversely, various features that are described inthe context of a single embodiment can also be implemented in multipleembodiments separately or in any suitable subcombination. Moreover,although features may be described above as acting in certaincombinations and even initially claimed as such, one or more featuresfrom a claimed combination can in some cases be excised from thecombination, and the claimed combination may be directed to asubcombination or variation of a subcombination.

Similarly, while operations are depicted in the drawings in a particularorder, this should not be understood as requiring that such operationsbe performed in the particular order shown or in sequential order, orthat all illustrated operations be performed, to achieve desirableresults. In certain circumstances, multitasking and parallel processingmay be advantageous. Moreover, the separation of various systemcomponents in the aspects described above should not be understood asrequiring such separation in all aspects, and it should be understoodthat the described program components and systems can generally beintegrated together in a single software product or packaged intomultiple software products.

The subject matter of this specification has been described in terms ofparticular aspects, but other aspects can be implemented and are withinthe scope of the following claims. For example, the actions recited inthe claims can be performed in a different order and still achievedesirable results. As one example, the processes depicted in theaccompanying figures do not necessarily require the particular ordershown, or sequential order, to achieve desirable results. In certainimplementations, multitasking and parallel processing may beadvantageous. Other variations are within the scope of the followingclaims.

These and other implementations are within the scope of the followingclaims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A computer-implemented method comprising:receiving content information indicating content electronically viewedby a user on a computing device; identifying, based on the contentinformation, one or more entities referred to in the content, whereinidentifying at least one entity of the one or more entities is furtherbased on proximity of the at least one entity to a location associatedwith the computing device, and wherein each of the one or more entitiesis associated with a weight value indicating a likelihood that thecorresponding entity is a referent of the content; identifying, for theat least one entity referred to in the content, one or more actions thatare mapped to the at least one entity in an entity database; receiving,via the computing device of the user and subsequent to receiving thecontent information, a request to enter a query into a search field; andproviding, for display with the search field in response to the requestto enter the query into the search field, an identifier of the at leastone entity and an identifier of a first action of the one or moreactions that are mapped to the at least one entity; wherein selection ofthe identifier of the first action via the computing device causesadditional content to be displayed at the computing device that isspecific to the first action for the at least one entity.
 2. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the identifier of the atleast one entity and the identifier of the first action are provided fordisplay in a suggestions list below the search field.
 3. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 2, wherein the identifier of the atleast one entity and the identifier of the first action are provided fordisplay in the suggestions list along with a previously entered query bythe user, the previously entered query being unrelated to the identifiedentities referred to in the content.
 4. The computer-implemented methodof claim 3, wherein selection of the previously entered query by theuser causes a web search for the previously entered query to beperformed.
 5. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, furthercomprising: providing, for display with the search field, an identifierof a second action of the one or more actions that are mapped to the atleast one entity; wherein selection of the identifier of the secondaction via the computing device causes second additional content to bedisplayed at the computing device that is specific to the second actionfor the at least one entity.
 6. The computer-implemented method of claim1, wherein the at least one entity is associated with a physical entitylocation, wherein the first action is an action of providing directionsto the physical entity location, and wherein the additional contentincludes directions to the physical entity location.
 7. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the at least one entityis associated with a phone number that is not included in the content,and further comprising: identifying the phone number based on a mappingbetween the at least one entity and the phone number in a databaseexternal to the content; wherein the first action is an action ofdialing the phone number, and wherein the additional content includescontent directed to dialing the phone number.
 8. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising: identifyinga weight assigned to the first action; wherein providing the identifierof the first action for display with the search field is based on theweight.
 9. The computer-implemented method of claim 8, furthercomprising: receiving contextual data indicating a context in which thecontent was electronically viewed by the user; wherein providing theidentifier of the first action for display with the search field isfurther based on the contextual data.
 10. The computer-implementedmethod of claim 9, wherein the contextual data includes the locationassociated with the computing device, and wherein the locationassociated with the computing device is a location of the computingdevice when the content was electronically viewed by the user.
 11. Asystem comprising: a memory comprising content information indicatingcontent electronically viewed by a user on a computing device, thecontent information comprising an address of the previously viewed usercontent, pointer to the previously viewed user content, or a copy of thepreviously viewed user content; and a processor configured to: identify,based on the content information, one or more entities referred to inthe content, wherein identifying at least one entity of the at least oneor more entities is further based on proximity of the at least oneentity to a location associated with the computing device, and whereineach of the one or more entities is associated with a weight valueindicating a likelihood that the corresponding entity is a referent ofthe content; identify, for at least one entity of the one or moreentities referred to in the content, one or more actions that are mappedto the at least one entity in an entity database; receive a request ofthe user to enter a query into a search field; and provide, for displaywith the search field in response to the request to enter the query intothe search field, an identifier of the at least one entity and anidentifier of a first action of the one or more actions that are mappedto the at least one entity; specific to the first action for the atleast one entity.
 12. The system of claim 11, wherein the identifier ofthe at least one entity and the identifier of the first action areprovided for display in a suggestions list below the search field. 13.The system of claim 12, wherein the identifier of the at least oneentity and the identifier of the first action are provided for displayin the suggestions list along with a previously entered query by theuser, the previously entered query being unrelated to the identifiedentities referred to in the content.
 14. The system of claim 13, whereinselection of the previously entered query by the user causes a websearch for the previously entered query to be performed.
 15. The systemof claim 11, wherein the processor is further configured to: provide,for display with the search field, an identifier of a second action ofthe one or more actions that are mapped to the at least one entity;wherein selection of the identifier of the second action via thecomputing device causes second additional content to be displayed at thecomputing device that is specific to the second action for the at leastone entity.
 16. The system of claim 11, wherein the at least one entityis associated with a physical entity location, wherein the first actionis an action of providing directions to the physical entity location,and wherein the additional content includes directions to the physicalentity location.
 17. The system of claim 11, wherein the at least oneentity is associated with a phone number that is not included in thecontent, wherein the processor is further configured to identify thephone number based on a mapping between the first action is an action ofdialing the phone number, and wherein the additional content includescontent directed to dialing the phone number.
 18. The system of claim11, wherein the processor is further configured to: identify a weightassigned to the first action; wherein providing the identifier of thefirst action for display with the search field is based on the weight.19. The system of claim 18, wherein the processor is further configuredto: receive contextual data indicating a context in which the contentwas electronically viewed by the user; wherein providing the identifierof the first action for display with the search field is further basedon the contextual data.
 20. The system of claim 19, wherein thecontextual data includes the location associated with the computingdevice, and wherein the location associated with the computing device isa location of the computing device when the content was electronicallyviewed by the user.
 21. A non-transitory machine-readable storage mediumcomprising machine-readable instructions for causing a processor toexecute a method for providing suggestions for a search based onpreviously viewed content, the method comprising: receiving contentinformation indicating content electronically viewed by a user on acomputing device; identifying, based on the content information, one ormore entities referred to in the content, wherein identifying at leastone entity of the one or more entities is further based on proximity ofthe at least one entity to a location associated with the computingdevice, and wherein each of the one or more entities is associated witha weight value indicating a likelihood that the corresponding entity isa referent of the content; identifying, for the at least one entityreferred to in the content, one or more actions that are mapped to theat least one entity in an entity database; receiving, via the computingdevice of the user and subsequent to receiving the content information,a request to enter a query into a search field; and providing, fordisplay with the search field in response to the request to enter thequery into the search field, an identifier of the at least one entityand an identifier of a first action of the one or more actions that aremapped to the at least one entity; wherein selection of the identifierof the first action via the computing device causes additional contentto be displayed at the computing device that is specific to the firstaction for the at least one entity.